The present invention relates to lighted drinking vessels, including cups, thermoses, mugs, glasses, pitchers, and other containers and items. More specifically, the present invention relates to non-invasively activating a light provided with such vessels, containers or items.
The prior art includes many examples of lighted drinking vessels and like devices. Examples include, but are not limited to, the devices of U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,575,553; 5,879,068; 6,065,848 and 6,352,352.
The device of U.S. Pat. No. 5,575,553 (issued to Tipton on Nov. 19, 1996, for a Container Using Fiber Optic Imaging) discloses a drinking vessel having an LED light source in the base and a motion sensitive switch for turning the light source on and off. U.S. Pat. No. 5,879,068 (issued to Menashrov on Mar. 9, 1999, for an Illuminated Drinking Vessel) discloses a drinking vessel with a battery power light source that is turned on and off with a mechanical switch.
Motion sensors and similar switches are disadvantageous in that they may be readily turned-on accidentally resulting in unnecessary energy consumption and more frequent battery replacement. This susceptibility to easy turn-on necessitates additional handling steps including careful positioning during use and storage and removal of batteries before dishwashing, etc., to avoid accidental turn-on (see Col. 4, lines 49-51, of U.S. Pat. No. 5,575,553 issued to Tipton).
Referring to mechanical switches, such as those discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,879,068 and others, several problems exist with mechanical switches. Depending on a given design, these problems may include that the switches leak during cleaning or use, resulting in unintended conductivity and corrosion; that the mechanical linkages in the switches are prone to failure and that the switches are positioned in such a manner that activation is awkward and risks beverage spilling.
A need thus exists for a lighted container or the like that may be reliably, controllably and economically turned on and off. A need further exists for a noninvasive activation mechanism and a design that provides easy cleaning and fosters activation or de-activation in a manner that is unlikely to result in spillage.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a lighted drinking vessel or other item in which activation of the light source is readily and reliably controllable.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a light drinking vessel or other item that includes a long-lived, non-invasive activation mechanism.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a lighted drinking vessel or other item that may be readily activated without spilling, but has low susceptibility to accidental turn-on.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a lighted drinking vessel or other item with a magnetic activation switch.
These and related objects of the present invention are achieved by use of a magnetically activated lighted drinking vessel and base unit as described herein.
In one embodiment, the present invention includes a drinking vessel or other container having a base region and a wall integrally formed with the base region so as to hold a liquid. A light source is provided within said base region and a magnetically actuated switch non-invasively activates and deactivates said light source. The light source may be a light emitting diode or other suitable light and is preferably provided in a resealable watertight housing. The magnetic switch may include a first one of paired materials provided inside the housing and a second one of paired materials provided outside the housing, movement of the paired material relative to one another causing the activation or de-activation of the light source.
In another embodiment, the present invention includes a lighted device having a housing that is releasably sealable and encloses a light source and power supply receptacle. A switch is provided for activating and deactivating said light source that functions in a manner that is non-invasive of said housing. The device preferably includes a liquid receiving chamber capable of receiving and holding liquid.
In yet another embodiment, the present invention includes a lighted base unit. The base unit may include a housing having a resealable watertight seal, a light source and a power supply receptacle provided therein. A magnetically actuated switch is provided for activation or de-activation of the light source.
In yet a further embodiment, the present invention includes a lighted base unit that has a resealable watertight housing containing a light source and a power supply receptacle. An activation member is moveably coupled to said housing and configured such that rotation of said activation member in a substantially horizontal plane achieves activation and de-activation of the light source.
The attainment of the foregoing and related advantages and features of the invention should be more readily apparent to those skilled in the art, after review of the following more detailed description of the invention taken together with the drawings.